Fish-Hawk.Net

It is not often that I am so totally blown away with a piece of equipment that I want to post about it.

This year I bought a convertible Nils auger. I was skeptical, but trying to drill holes by hand or even using my drill on a conventional auger was getting too tiring. The Nils auger, at nearly $300 after tax was a huge hit... but after just a few weeks of use I can tell you that it is 100% worth it!

Why?
- It never "bites" the way a conventional auger does, even when you are punching through that last inch of ice.
- It has very steady torque, yes your drill will work hard, but I have an 18V Ryobi and used a smaller drill from work today... no problems., thats with the large 8" auger! - NOTE: Requires a 1/2 drill chuck not 3/8".
- I can REDRILL an existing hole!! I have never been able to open a hole that was partially closed up, this has caused major problems in the past in my shack when I go back to fish after a week and find the old holes are about 2 inches in diameter of open water. Conventional auguer just jams in the hole. The Nils powers right through and cleans the hole out beautifully.
- I think it clears the ice out of the hole better, seems to really pump the water through the hole leaving it with little or no slush after drilling.
- It has a perfectly sized plate built onto the end to prevent it falling through the ice if it falls off the drill
- Has good deep channels for the drill to bite on.

The ONLY downside i have found is that the blade cover is poorly designed.



I am not affiliated with the company, but I know that it comes up occasionally on this site about using electric drills, and in my opinion this is the way to go.

So I guess $169.99 wasn't too much to pay at cabelas last week ??
I just couldn't pull the trigger, but after this review I'm kicking my butt

Bear wrote:So I guess $169.99 wasn't too much to pay at cabelas last week ??
I just couldn't pull the trigger, but after this review I'm kicking my butt

Yeah, that's for the 6" version. I noticed though that Cabelas.ca has now pulled it from the website as it appears to be completely sold out. So if you search for it directly on cabelas.ca you won't find it (at least it didn't come up for me).

A few years ago, I asked folks here for their recommendation for the best, lightest gas-powered ice auger. Based on that advice, I bought the Nils augers (4" and 8") and the Tanaka power head. I have a bad back and my old 3 hp 10" Jiffy was just too darned heavy, and so was the new 8" Jiffy with the 2 hp motor. This Nils auger is FABULOUS, it it very light and cuts like a bomb. At that time I never considered an electric drill motor, but maybe that will be the next logical step if and when I decide I don't want the gas-powered motor!

Doug

I just realized tonight that the drill-part is ONLY compatible with 1/2" drills!!!

Won't fit a 3/8 (unless you really want to grind it down).

Hi folks - I was lucky enough to run into Scarkner out on Shirley's Bay today, and I can attest that this auger was very impressive. He loaned it to me to drill some holes, and it outperformed my gas auger. I was a skeptic, but he turned me into a believer! Thx again for letting me give your auger a try!

A drill is the way to go, lighter, no gas to mix. About as much effort as turning on a light swith and cuts through 20 inches of ice in seconds. Sold my 10" jiffyvand 8 inch manual auger. Bought a Finbore 3 and a Milwaukee drill with 1200 lds of torque and a clam drill plate. Sooooo slick. Everyone who sees it or has used it all are wide eyed impressed. Absolutely love it. Nuff said

You folks are adding to my education, that's for sure!

I am not sure I will get rid of my Tanaka power head quite yet, but i sense that somewhere out there an electric drill might be in the future. I have a buddy who fishes in Manitoba, often with three feet of the hard stuff, and he uses an electric drill with an auger also. I forget how many holes he gets per battery charge, but it was an impressive number!

Doug

Lunker Larry wrote:A drill is the way to go, lighter, no gas to mix. About as much effort as turning on a light swith and cuts through 20 inches of ice in seconds. Sold my 10" jiffyvand 8 inch manual auger. Bought a Finbore 3 and a Milwaukee drill with 1200 lds of torque and a clam drill plate. Sooooo slick. Everyone who sees it or has used it all are wide eyed impressed. Absolutely love it. Nuff said

DITTO. I have a Finbore 3 8 inch and I just bought an adapter and a Milwaukee drill this December since I couldn't do the manual anymore. Super happy with the results!

Rod

Peron wrote:

Lunker Larry wrote:A drill is the way to go, lighter, no gas to mix. About as much effort as turning on a light swith and cuts through 20 inches of ice in seconds. Sold my 10" jiffyvand 8 inch manual auger. Bought a Finbore 3 and a Milwaukee drill with 1200 lds of torque and a clam drill plate. Sooooo slick. Everyone who sees it or has used it all are wide eyed impressed. Absolutely love it. Nuff said

DITTO. I have a Finbore 3 8 inch and I just bought an adapter and a Milwaukee drill this December since I couldn't do the manual anymore. Super happy with the results!

Rod

I checked out Rod's Finbore 3 and was surprised to see that they are also starting to curve the blades more which certainly helps it carve the ice rather than scraping through it. Not sure who copied whom...